Jay's Synopsis Formula will work on your novel.

[JayDirex]

This is actually an answer to an earlier thread, but it's best to share as a full thread. Why? Because it works. It does not matter if your story is slice of life about a GENDER-BENT BLOB OF ENERGY. My synopsis formula works. All you have to do is answer these FOUR QUESTIONS and you can create a great synopsis.

1. Who's the MC?
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing)
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal?
4. How do they attempt to resolve the conflict?

____________________________________________________________________________ EXAMPLE- TWO OF MINE___________________

Story: The Villainous Lee Twins

1. Who's the MC? The Twins, Bro and Sis.
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing) Kick ass Bounty Hunters/wild pair.
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal? A high-risk bounty job goes wrong, now crews trying to kill them.
4. How do they attempt to resolve the conflict? Lock-load and shoot their way out- who knows if they lives or dies

SYNOPSIS- notice how each question is answered in order below:

In this action packed shoot-em-up! (1) We meet gutsy twin bounty hunters, Bro and Sis. (2) A wild pair who thrive on snaring high-reward fugitives. (3) But one day a dangerous job goes violently wrong, and the twins become the target of two murderous crews out to kill the bounty they're transporting. (4) Now trapped between warring sides, BULLETS FLY as the siblings go full metal jacket to guard their bounty and stay alive!
Assassin girls, Baka Twins, Battle Rifles, Crime, Action Packed!!

______________________________________

Story: Rica Wants Him Dead

1. Who's the MC? Teen Ko
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing) Kick butt Assassin, one of the best.
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal? He rescued a mob boss kidnapped daughter, now bad-dudes trying to kill him
4. How does he attempt to resolve the conflict? Seeks help from dangerous girl from his past- who knows if he lives or dies.


SYNOPSIS- notice how each question is answered in order below:

In this Crime/Drama/Romance- (1)We meet Teen Assassin, Ko. (2) One of the best in the business. (3) After rescuing a Korean mob boss’s five year old daughter from kidnappers he becomes a hunted man in New York City. (4) Now on the run and desperate to protect the child, Ko discovers there’s only one person willing to help him: The beautiful and deadly Rica Reyes. A villainous Teen Rifle Girl from Ko’s past, who once tried to kill him. Out of options he's forced to trust Rica and accept her aid. But Ko is no fool, and he knows that the price Rica will extract for her help could cost him everything. - Teen Romance, Tsundere, Light Novel, YA, Assassins


DO YOU KNOW WHY THIS SYNOPSIS WORKS WITH ALL STORIES? Because your story is about 1. A CHARACTER(S), 2. who does a normal thing a 3. Suddenly something abnormal happens/conflict 4. The character(s) now has to resolve this conflict.

 

[LostLibrarian]

Given that a lot of novels start with the reincarnation: Does that mean the "normal thing to do" is dying?
That's dark!

 

[JayDirex]

Given that a lot of novels start with the reincarnation: Does that mean the "normal thing to do" is dying?
That's dark!

NO, dying is the conflict. A typical isekai works like this. just follow the formula for a made up isekai

Story: DUNGEON CRUSADER

In this gamer adventure, (1) Small town Tony (2) is the best in the nation at Dungeon Crusader online. After a hard day's work delivering pizzas, (3)Tony is on his way home when Truck-san murders him! All but certain of death, Tony is blown away when he wakes up in the lobby of the Dungeon Crusader game itself, and with no idea how to get back to home. (4) Now it's a race against time as he must defeat all bosses in order to tame the DUNGEON, and escape back to Earth.

1. Who's the MC? Small Town Tony
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing) One of the best gamers/pizza delivery guy
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal? Truck-san killed him, but he woke up trapped in a game
4. How does he attempt to resolve the conflict? Defeat the game to get back home.


it's not great but you see what I mean. Follow the formula (and write better than me in your hook)

 

[Saileri]

Don't tell me what to do
I'm going to have a single sentence synopsis that ends with a question and you can't make me change it

But jokes aside, nice format. In the case of the story I've mentioned, the title would be self-explanatory.

 

[LostLibrarian]

A lot of Isekai don't even start with their normal life, but with the death and their reincarnation is the crisis out of the norm -> that's why... joke *sigh*
And I would say that for a lot of Isekai Story the actual conflict of the story happens in the new world and their death is more part of the setting...

But overall nice checklist for people who struggle to write a blurb.
Gives the main parts of the story just fine :)

 

[tiaf]

The fact that you used Tony as example is very amusing

maybe I should rewrite my synopsis

 

[JayDirex]

The fact that you used Tony as example is very amusing

OH SNAP, it was just an easy name came off the top of my head Besides, if our Tony got Truck-sanned he would re-write the code wherever he reincarnated.

 

[Deleted member 29316]

Pretty much like my own synopsis formula, only mine is more detailed and exhausting than yours (which is concise and direct-to-the-point).

Here's mine:

1) Genre: (This is to set the 'mood' of the story.)
2) Theme: (This is so that you know what you'll write about.)
3) What is the Story All About: (Pretty much your story in a couple of sentences. If it becomes a paragraph, then it's a synopsis now. This is so that you know which direction your story would take...)
4) Main Problem: (The overall goal of your story's characters, or the story itself.)
5) Characters' Solution to the Problem: (The characters' reactions to the problem, it can be the main, or the supporting. This would not only set the direction of your story, it would give you that focus, especially when you're writing in volumes.)
6) Issues Arising from the Main Problem: (This is pretty helpful especially when you're planning to write in volumes, or arcs.)
7) Characters' Solution to the Secondary Problems: (Like step 5, only that it deals with arcs and/or volumes.)

After I have answered those questions, I then proceed to plotting, which I categorized into Main Plot and Sub-Plots (If I write in arcs/volumes).

Plot
-Introduction
-Rising Action
-Climax
-Falling Tension
-End

Only then that I would create the characters (with personalities and names), after I answered these...)

Additional Info
Characters' Profiles

Name:
Age:
Race: (Optional)
Background: (It's a short description of the characters' family, or personal background, if applicable. Use this part to determine his/her personality, which is on the fifth part.)
Personality: (A good suggestion here is to give the positive, and negative attitudes and behavior of the character.)
Abilities: (List down and give short description of the character's ability.)
Relationships: (Optional, pretty much describes the character's relationships with other characters.)

 

[JayDirex]

wow, that's a lot for a synopsis. I mean there are blurbs up here that are comically brief but do the job,

"I woke up this morning as the villain in the otome game I always play. Follow my adventures!"

adding in subplot and side characters seems like an info dump, no?

 

[Deleted member 29316]

wow, that's a lot for a synopsis. I mean there are blurbs up here that are comically brief but do the job,

"I woke up this morning as the villain in the otome game I always play. Follow my adventures!"

adding in subplot and side characters seems like an info dump, no?

Yep. I agree. That's why yours is definitely better.

Pretty simple and concise. Thanks for sharing it!

 

[MajorKerina]

Hmmm, I feel like this is the format I use anyway. I often minimize the standard version of reality for the character though.

Nine years ago, beings who look like anime girls seemingly started appearing in the world. Known as the "Kinrae", they live among us, quietly and peacefully. [World setting]

Sean Kurtz, [person] a young man with a past he'd rather forget, has idolized the Kinrae since they first arrived [what they do]. He eagerly enrolls in an anthropology class that studies the Kinrae through the use of strange devices allowing human beings to emulate their appearance [weird stuff that happens]. His experiences with these devices will change the way he sees those around him, how they see him, and enable a future for Sean far different than his past. [scope ahead]

I feel iffy about saying [This character is going to X and Y]. I like broad strokes but when there is more of a direct conflict it is easier to lay that out.

I often feel like I have to pull my own teeth to get a description which lays out story beats.

My original version of my currently-posting work just began -
Three roommates out for a walk find themselves in an anime world, where nothing is quite as it appears.

I realized that wasn't enough so I actually...had to try something where something like a character in the story wrote the rest.

~You hear a whisper on the air...~

Three friends, three young men just going about their lives. They have no idea what awaits them.

Kelly Forester, a man obsessed with the tropes of anime and the cuteness of what living 2D would be like. Nathan Gravina, an ambitious friend full of energy but also fear of the softness inside his heart. Jamie Harrison, lazy but prickly like a bitter hedgehog about letting anyone really get close to him.

Mecchen House awaits for them, prepared. Watched over by many eyes, the girls of this special place are motherly presences, hissing haters of men, cold splintered slabs of ice, radiant voices that speak beyond their years, and mysteries they can only hope to unravel.

In the darkness and the light, in the calm and the storm, these three...these twelve...will discover just what this world and others have in store for them...

I think that was important even though I hated the process of writing it. Other stories I often make previously-on type recaps, so it's easier to get into summing things up.

 

[K5Rakitan]

I got most of these elements already in my synopsis, but I put more emphasis on the other characters since her husband and her boyfriend ARE her "normal thing" and her new profession doesn't break up her normal at all. Society is the antagonist in the story.

Kaiba’s Prostitute

When CEO Seto Kaiba propositions Joan, she expects a one-night stand, but he and his brother keep coming back for more. Now the Kaiba brothers want an heir from her and will pay any price to get it. How do Joan’s husband and boyfriend feel about her new profession?...

www.scribblehub.com

Also, I bring in fantasy elements at Chapter 40 and don't want to give too many spoilers.

 

[JayDirex]

~You hear a whisper on the air...~

#1 Who is the MC?
Three friends, three young men just going about their lives. They have no idea what awaits them.

#2 what are they about?
Kelly Forester, a man obsessed with the tropes of anime and the cuteness of what living 2D would be like. Nathan Gravina, an ambitious friend full of energy but also fear of the softness inside his heart. Jamie Harrison, lazy but prickly like a bitter hedgehog about letting anyone really get close to him.

#3 Vague conflict, more mystery but still abnormal.
Mecchen House awaits for them, prepared. Watched over by many eyes, the girls of this special place are motherly presences, hissing haters of men, cold splintered slabs of ice, radiant voices that speak beyond their years, and mysteries they can only hope to unravel.

#4 how did they resolve it? possibly through discovering themselves
In the darkness and the light, in the calm and the storm, these three...these twelve...will discover just what this world and others have in store for them...

You seem to have this down ^_^
good stuff!

 

[JayDirex]

@K5Rakitan wooo, I really like your synopsis! you cover the key points in a playful way. we know immediately it's about 3 characters doing adult things. and it seems like the proposition of a child is the conflict in a bit of a three-way love triangle I guess?

and you state what one of the characters does regularly when you title him as CEO. so immediately the reader knows that he's some sort of boss, and probably rich.

I'll admit mine is a more formulaic blurb. but it fits my genre just as your blurb fits yours and you're still covered all of the bases.

who's the MC? what are they about? what's the conflict, and how will they deal with the resolution? seems they'll just se what happens.

good stuff!

 

[CupcakeNinja]

This is actually an answer to an earlier thread, but it's best to share as a full thread. Why? Because it works. It does not matter if your story is slice of life about a GENDER-BENT BLOB OF ENERGY. My synopsis formula works. All you have to do is answer these FOUR QUESTIONS and you can create a great synopsis.

1. Who's the MC?
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing)
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal?
4. How do they attempt to resolve the conflict?

____________________________________________________________________________ EXAMPLE- TWO OF MINE___________________

Story: The Villainous Lee Twins

1. Who's the MC? The Twins, Bro and Sis.
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing) Kick ass Bounty Hunters/wild pair.
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal? A high-risk bounty job goes wrong, now crews trying to kill them.
4. How do they attempt to resolve the conflict? Lock-load and shoot their way out- who knows if they lives or dies

SYNOPSIS- notice how each question is answered in order below:

In this action packed shoot-em-up! (1) We meet gutsy twin bounty hunters, Bro and Sis. (2) A wild pair who thrive on snaring high-reward fugitives. (3) But one day a dangerous job goes violently wrong, and the twins become the target of two murderous crews out to kill the bounty they're transporting. (4) Now trapped between warring sides, BULLETS FLY as the siblings go full metal jacket to guard their bounty and stay alive!
Assassin girls, Baka Twins, Battle Rifles, Crime, Action Packed!!

______________________________________

Story: Rica Wants Him Dead

1. Who's the MC? Teen Ko
2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing) Kick butt Assassin, one of the best.
3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal? He rescued a mob boss kidnapped daughter, now bad-dudes trying to kill him
4. How does he attempt to resolve the conflict? Seeks help from dangerous girl from his past- who knows if he lives or dies.


SYNOPSIS- notice how each question is answered in order below:

In this Crime/Drama/Romance- (1)We meet Teen Assassin, Ko. (2) One of the best in the business. (3) After rescuing a Korean mob boss’s five year old daughter from kidnappers he becomes a hunted man in New York City. (4) Now on the run and desperate to protect the child, Ko discovers there’s only one person willing to help him: The beautiful and deadly Rica Reyes. A villainous Teen Rifle Girl from Ko’s past, who once tried to kill him. Out of options he's forced to trust Rica and accept her aid. But Ko is no fool, and he knows that the price Rica will extract for her help could cost him everything. - Teen Romance, Tsundere, Light Novel, YA, Assassins


DO YOU KNOW WHY THIS SYNOPSIS WORKS WITH ALL STORIES? Because your story is about 1. A CHARACTER(S), 2. who does a normal thing a 3. Suddenly something abnormal happens/conflict 4. The character(s) now has to resolve this conflict.

Too long, didnt read.

My formula is thus: who I am, this is whats going on, this is what imma do about it.

Example:
Im the villainess's brother.

My sister is heading towards a Bad End.

Imma either kill or fuck whoever gets in the way of her happiness, and not necessarily in that order.

Now i just gotta expand on that a little. Make it fun. Now, admittedly, i trolled my readers with the synopsis that came out cuz the story was way more bonkers than what was implied, but still. It was good bait.

Spoiler: The result of said formula

Tell me, what does one do when they discover they were reincarnated into an Otome game as the villainess’ playboy older brother?

Of course I had always been aware of my situation as a reincarnated person, but it was only when my sister’s engagement to the Crown Prince was announced that I finally encountered a piece of my first life after all these years.

I thought, “Hey, this is exactly the same situation as that Otome game I was playing that day!”

But wait. My sister becomes the evil, hated villainess whose fate doesn’t ends well at all, you say? As if I’d allow that!

The protagonist wants to steal your man and ruin you? Too arrogant! This daddy(brother) will mess her up good!

I’ll completely crush all the people that want to harm my precious, adorable little sister!

Just fall in love with the Crown Prince and achieve your happiness, my sweet sister!

This is such a story.

I didnt EXPLICITLY use the "i'll kill or fuck whoever gets in her way" bit cuz i didnt wanna make the later craziness too obvious. But its sorta implied. And yeah. Idont see any reason this kinda shit gotta be explained in so many paragraphs yo. Of course, i never had problems making a synopsis. I mean I have had OODLES of examples to be inspired from. People just gotta look at what authors they like have done with their synopses. I dunno how a person can be a reader/ author and not think about taking examples from authors you yourself love. You are wasting resources, people!

 

[WhoCares]

Yeah, a story is a character with a conflict. I can think of some experimental works that explicitly exclude one or the other but for the most part without either of those you can't have a story.
Do think it gets a little more complicated than this formula for things like multiple POV or when the MC doesn't have a stated goal but probably not that much more.

 

[ForestDweller]

Yeah, I looked at my synopsis and it already answered all four questions.

 

[JayDirex]

Absolutely! Conflict must be in the synopsis. And some are terrific at writing those two sentence blurbs that hook.

Unfortunately my type of stories need a little more description or no one would read them >.< *\0/*

 

[gaylolis]

1. Who's the MC?

It's a paper.

2. What is he/she they about? (their normal thing)

Just a piece of paper waiting to be filled with text..

3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal?

The Author wrote the 'N' word.

4. How do they attempt to resolve the conflict?

You decide.

==

I think this format can make a fun writing prompt :D

 

[Yairy]

3. What is the conflict that broke up the normal? Truck-san killed him, but he woke up trapped in a game

I don't care what novel it is, any novel that puts Truck-san in the synopsis automatically gets a 5-star review.

Great formula. Seems I've already been doing it without breaking it down into those steps.